How to Choose the Right Hair Colour for Your Skin Tone

Celebrity hairstylist Adhuna Bhabani tells you how to colour your hair at home like a pro. 

10 July, 2020
How to Choose the Right Hair Colour for Your Skin Tone

Whether you fancy a new look, want to cover pesky greys or simply want to change things up a bit, colouring your hair is a simple yet easy solution. But it is also important to understand that Indian hair is different. While the lighter hair canvas in the west serves as a fresh base for any colour, choosing a hair colour for Indian skin tones can be slightly trickier. We cannot blindly follow hair trends that work in the west. So Cosmo gets celebrity hairstylist Adhuna Bhabani to tell us how to choose the right colour.

Cosmo: What are the things to keep in mind while choosing a hair colour?

Adhuna Bhabani:Select the right shade: It is important to select the right shade so that it complements your skin tone (and your eye colour too). Choose a shade that is, if not completely the same, almost similar to your skin tone. Hair colour that complements your skin tone looks good.

Ensure your hair is clean: Try keeping your hair as clean as possible before starting the colouring process. Clean and dry hair is the most suitable canvas for hair colouring.

If colouring at home, choose an appropriate kit: It is necessary to select a colouring kit depending on what you want. For instance, if you wish to hide your grey hair, select a kit to help you do just that. Be wise when choosing your kit. There are hair colour options in the market that offer 100% grey coverage, go for that option!

hair colour

Go for the shine: Hair colour often doesn’t give you the shine that you want. Along with a great shade, make sure to choose a hair colour that gives you great shine. Shine serums generally do the trick as a post colour remedy. That’s why when you have limited or no access to your stylist, for shiny salon-like hair at home, BBLUNT launched its at-home range of high shine crème hair colour -  Salon Secret. Developed especially keeping Indian skin tones in mind, you can choose from a variety of shades like Coffee Natural Brown, Chocolate Dark Brown, Honey Golden Brown or Mahogany Red and Deep Burgundy, if reds are what you prefer. We even have Natural black for the conventional at heart and a blueberry Blue black for those who want to try something new. So, make your hair colour decisions wisely! 

Avoid stains on your skin: Often while colouring your hair, stains remain along the hairline. To avoid this, apply Vaseline or a barrier cream. Another option could be dabbing some eye make-up remover on the stain to remove it.

Know how to apply hair colour: It is important to apply your hair colour correctly in order to ensure it stays for long. Many times, we apply it wrong and wonder why it has faded so soon. Hence, applying it right from the root is necessary to ensure long-lasting hair colour. Seek professional advice always, when in doubt.”

Cosmo: What colours to choose for different skin tones?

AB: "As far as hair colour is concerned, it usually tends to be something very personal. For global colour, even if you’re doing this at home, when picking a shade, it’s important to keep in mind your skin tone, eye colour as well as the colour of your wardrobe. When it comes to global coverage, most of the popular shades can be purchased over the counter. You can choose from a variety of soft-warm browns like a Honey Golden brown, Mahogany to Deep Burgundy or Wine, Rich Chocolates, Coffee Browns and Vibrant Reds. Always remember to go for the shine. You can tell quality hair colour with the shine that it delivers.

If you want to do something that looks very dramatic, then you can, by all means, go against what your natural colour pigment tells you. The bold and experimental at heart can opt for poppy blues, pinks or even soft pastels. Here, what’s more important than the colour you use is how you use it! And this lies in the technique, done only by a trusted professional in the salon.  

A colour that enhances the shape of a cut will add to the feel-good factor. Gold and light brown shades flatter warm tones and cooler ones can experiment with reds or blues."

Adhuna Bhabani

Adhuna Bhabani

Cosmo: Which colours give the best grey coverage?

AB: "Best grey coverage for Indian hair is on a level 4 (brown) and below. The darker colour pigments will always provide a better coverage for the grey strands."

Cosmo: Which colours are low maintenance?

AB: "The natural shades require less maintenance than the fashion shades. Reds and colours that need to be pre-lightened first, tend to lose the vibrancy faster."

Cosmo: What is the post colour care that one has to follow? 

AB: "For your hair colour to last long, be sure to maintain the vibrancy by using a shampoo and conditioner combination with colour protect properties. All the shampoos and conditioners in our BBLUNT range of products have been developed keeping exactly this in mind. Using a hydrating shampoo, followed by a conditioner, both with colour protect properties works as a protective layer and allows your hair to retain its gloss and softness.

Regardless of your texture and hair type, a pro-hack is a deep conditioning treatment to maintain hair health and keep them looking well-nourished. Begin by cleansing your scalp and then massaging your conditioner in circulate motions through your mid lengths. Wrap a hot towel for 15 minutes and voila! Therefore, do away with hair woes this monsoon by having in place a monsoon hair care regime that ensures your locks remain frizz free. 

After a hair wash, be sure to apply a great leave-in cream to nourish and hydrate your strands further. This will protect it from the harsh sun, harmful UV rays and all kinds of environmental pollution – like dust as well as thermal pollution.

I would also strongly advise that you limit the use of heat tools and wear your coloured hair more naturally. Should you succumb to heat styling, be sure to apply a heat protectant like Hot Shot heat protecting mist which is enriched with grape seed oil that will not only serve as a great shield to protect your hair from the heat but also leave your hair smelling divine. Remember that just like we use sun block for our skin, our hair needs protection too.”

 

 

Comment